Search and Rescue
by mediahybrid117
Summary: The horse rode in and carried Link on her back, torn and exhausted. After he fell off her back, she ran off, peeling away in smoke leaving the village with shivers down their spine and fearful. They then watch Link's skin peel away in smoke like Epona's did, however, only a dead Stalfos remained crumpled on the ground. Link was captured- it scared them to find out who did the deed.
1. Chapter 1

"Hyrule is saved! Link has defeated Ganondorf!" the townspeople cheered. They've been cheering of this accomplishment for the past three days since the messenger dove returned with Link's letter. They had been cleaning and decorating for a festival to celebrate Link's return from his year-long trip.

A blonde teen with deep blue eyes had turned around to check the progress once again, rolling his eyes and turning back to the stream, "Oh sure- a kid loses his parents and is adopted into a family of swordsmen gets ignored. The kid with the same story gets adopted to a family with a bunch of old farmers and _he's_ the hero."

"I'm not jealous, you know." A man sitting beside him said, "If that's what you're implying." He continued, "You _do_ know there's more to life than heroism, right Claus?" he asked. This man had long red hair pulled back in a loose ponytail and eyes the same color yellow of the harvest moon. He wore a blue shirt that was loose and puffy and pale tan pants of the same nature, however, they tucked into his boots.

"Still." Claus mumbled, "You'd think." He wore a green tunic with a belt around his waist and across his chest. Claus was often mistaken for Link on several occasions.

"You'd also think that I'd grow up as a swordsman, and not an archer, right?" he pointed a thumb to the bow on his back, "Besides, I didn't come from a family of soldiers like Link did."

"True." Claus said.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa- don't drop it!"

This snapped both of their attention, causing them to turn around and watch some of the townspeople try and stand up a tall arch made of wood.

Claus sighed and turned back. "Raud, would _we_ ever get our chance?"

"What of?"

"Of… you know, actually making something with ourselves. Marry a princess, save a kingdom-"

"Link didn't marry Zelda." 'Raud' cut him off.

"You don't know that." Claus said, taking in the amber-colored glow of the scenery as the sun set. "But you get my point, right?"

"Yeah." He leaned back, "We should be getting back. Mother would be making supper at this point."

Claus stood up and dusted himself off, re-attaching the sheath of his sword to his waist, normally preferring it on his back like Link would. "Raudrey, how do you think things are going to change when Link gets home? Now that he's a hero and all?"

"I don't know." Raudrey stood up and dusted himself off. "Let's just go." He said, staring straight ahead, his gaze distant as they walked back to their home.

Claus watched him for a while, "Are you mad?"

"Not at all." Raudrey finally blinked, "Why would I?"

"Well… you and Link were close friends." He said, "What if Link stops being your friend?"

Raudrey laughed at his brother's naivety, "If being such a celebrity and such a big shot gets to Link's head, I'll have to hit him."

"Won't that get you arrested?" Claus asked.

"If he lets me get arrested, then you hit him. If not, then he's learned a lesson."

Claus opened the door and let Raudrey in first, closing the door behind him.

They were then greeted by a man, namely, Claus' father, "Boys. You're late. Where have you been? We thought you were going to help set up the village for the festival."

"What's the point? It's all gotta be taken down again anyways." Claus asked.

Raudrey nudged his ribs with his elbow, "Sorry, Father, we were talking at the stream."

"Well, no matter." He shook his head, "Your mother has supper set in the dining room."

"Right." Raudrey towed Claus into the dining room and sat beside him, as he always did.

Their mother turned around and set a plate in front of each of them, each loaded with meat and potatoes. Then she set a glass of water next to each plate. He remembered when his mother had a voice. However, there was an incident eight years ago that traumatized her to the point where she hadn't spoken since. This was the same incident in which Raudrey and Link's parents were killed.

The night was dark, flames engulfed a majority of the town and smoke suffocated its people. Stalfos and Moblins were setting fire to anything that hadn't been lit and demolishing what they could of the stone or metal structures. Raudrey's home was one of the last few to burn. At the time, the fourteen-year-old was running to grab buckets of water to put out the fires. He then saw that his home had caught fire, so he ran into the burning structure to retrieve a small cat.

"Raudrey!?" a red-headed woman, his mother, called. "Where's Raudrey?" she asked.

"He ran back into your house." An older blonde knight shouted, this was Link's father.

Raudrey's mother ran back home, "Raudrey! Get out of there!" she screamed. Then she ran into the house.

"Mother! I can't find the cat."

"He'll be fine." she grabbed his arm and tried running him out of the house. After taking a quick glance upward, she shoved him forward, letting herself get caught under one of the support beams that ran along the ceiling.

"Mother!" he called and tried lifting it off of her, instead, he burnt his hands.

"Raudrey, get out of here." She coughed, "Go."

"I can't leave you here." He tried again.

"And I can't let you kill yourself trying to help me. Go find your father."

Reluctantly, Raudrey turned and ran out of the burning building, ducking as a skeleton horse ran by with a Stalfos on its back. "Father!" he called out, noticing that the Moblins and Stalfos were all retreating, leaving the town destroyed. Bodies of people, Stalfos and Moblins laid everywhere. Amongst the bodies, was Raudrey's father. He stumbled and knelt by the crumpled figure, "Father?"

His father looked up at him weakly, several arrows in his front and back, ensuring that he wouldn't survive. "W-where's your m-mother?" he coughed, spitting blood onto the dirt.

"She's…" Raudrey looked down and wiped his eyes with his rough, charred hands, "She was trapped, I couldn't get her out…"

"Shh…" His father brought up a bloody hand to lower Raudrey's hands, "At least she won't be alone…" he said weakly.

"What about me?" Raudrey asked, "I don't want to be alone…" he cried.

"You won't be… y-you have Link and Claus, and all of your other friends. You'll be okay." He managed a bloody smile, "G-good night, Raudrey." He said, "Your mother and I love you… very… much…" he whispered as his eyes closed.

"Father, don't leave…" Raudrey cried.

"Mom?" a different voice called, "Dad, no!" the voice became panicked.

Raudrey looked over and saw Link on his knees beside the bodies of his parents.

"Raudrey?" a smaller voice asked, "Moma and Popa wants you to come with us."

Raudrey looked up at the owner of the voice, finding nine-year-old Claus, holding out a hand to help Raudrey off the ground.

Raudrey hadn't spoken in weeks after the incident. He'd only cried, and each time Raudrey needed to, Claus was there to keep him company. He'd heard several times what had happened to Raudrey's parents from Raudrey, he felt like he was there. The tragic story had turned itself into a memory and was now burned into Claus' mind as though it had happened to him, however his parents were still alive.

"Claus?" Raudrey asked, "Are you okay?"

Claus shook his head, realizing that he'd been sitting at the dinner table this whole time holding the top of his water glass. Everyone were halfway through eating their meals and he hadn't taken a single bite. He scrambled to try and catch up with everyone.

"What's wrong?" his father asked.

"Nothing. Just thinking." Claus shook his head.

Raudrey continued eating, disturbed to even imagine what Claus could've possibly been thinking about. He hadn't blinked a single time. His ear then twitched, "Anyone else hear that?"

Everyone listened carefully, hearing a commotion outside. Most of them saying, 'Is that Epona? Link's home early!'

The family of four ran outside and watched the horse and its rider come in, the rider appeared to be Link, his clothes torn, his cloak covering his face. His body was slumped forward and appeared very exhausted. His mouth barely parted as sweat dripped down his face. His breathing was almost absent, raspy and weak. His hands shook as he held the reins on Epona. The townspeople waited for him to speak, or move, or do anything. He took a forced wheezing breath and fell off the side of the horse, hitting the ground hard. The horse reared, black smoke peeling away its skin and muscle, revealing only its skeleton. It galloped off, leaving the crumpled body on the ground.

The mayor immediately knelt by Link's side, or who he thought was Link. He removed the hood and found Link's face. The same black smoke peeled itself away and only revealed a Stalfos, however, this Stalfos was dead, just bewitched to stay stable while it was on the horse's back. The mayor found a piece of parchment attached to the Stalfos' belt.

"What's it say?" a concerned woman asked, the entire town horrified at the sight of what had happened.

"I have your hero. If you want him back…" he shook while reading this, "Send your best men…"

"Who is it from?" another woman asked.

"It doesn't say." The mayor stood up, "Mikolas, Taro, Nikai, gather as many men as you can."

Claus and Raudrey looked at each other, nodded and began running to the community stables, only having Claus' father grab the backs of their collars. "Where do you think you two are going?" he asked.

"Um…" Claus stammered.

"We're helping everyone prepare their horses." Raudrey said, "Saves time. Just get armed and ready to go. Your horses will be ready to go by the time you get here."

Claus' father, whose name was Mikolas, sighed, "Alright. Don't do anything stupid, boys. Understand?"

"Yes, father." Claus nodded and watch him walk away. He looked back at Raudrey who was now equipping the horses with saddles. "Wait, we're just going to sit here?"

"Hell no." Raudrey said. "We're just prepping their horses before we get the heck out of here."

Claus smirked, "That's more like it."

"You armed and ready to go?" Raudrey asked, finally throwing the saddle on top of his horse.

"Duh…" Claus chuckled and jumped onto his horse.

Raudrey opened the back gate to the stables and led his horse out, followed by Claus riding his. Claus waited for Raudrey to close the gate and mount his horse. "Alright, let's go." He whispered and rode off with Claus.

The farther they got into the woods, the darker things got. Claus looked around, seeing the haze that made the nighttime woods seem haunted. "Raud? Are we sure about this?"

Raudrey took a deep breath. "No… but I'm sure Link wasn't either." He shuddered, "Just keep going. It'll be alright." He said.

Claus nodded, but was still unsure. "Are we lost?"

"No." Raudrey said, seeming distant. "If we keep going straight, we should reach the valley." After that, we can try and track Link down."

"Alright…" Claus said, "And we'll do that how?" he asked, doubting his adopted brother's plan.

"He'll ask around villages he had to have passed. We'll just ask them if they've saw him pass by."

"Do they even know what he'll look like?"

"Yeah. They'll _have_ to."

"Why's that?"

Raudrey smirked, "He looks like _you_." He chuckled.

Claus' ears lowered, "Very funny." He grumbled.

Back at the village, in the stables in which the boys had fled from, Mikolas and his men stood and shouted at each other.

"I don't understand, you said that they were preparing the horses!" one man shouted at Mikolas.

"Technically, they are prepared…" another man said and scratched his head. "They're just… tied together…"

The seven remaining horses were indeed prepared to leave, but after Raudrey had saddled each of them, he took the reins and ties them all to the same post, each rein entangled with another, only to buy him and Claus time for them to escape. Three men were currently trying to untangle the horses.

"I swear, your boy's trying to leave Link for dead." One of the more sour men suggested.

Mikolas sighed, "Claus wouldn't have thought about this. This was Raudrey's doing." He sighed, "He and Link were close friends as children, I'm sure he just wants to help Link."

"He should've let _us_ gone then." He growled.

"Gumbei, Raudrey is stronger than you think. And with Claus at his side, they'll be unstoppable." Mikolas said, "True strength isn't in numbers, true strength is in the heart of one."

Gumbei sighed, "Fine." He said, "But what if we have to organize another search party for your boys?"

Mikolas took a deep breath, "We won't have to." He said, "I have faith in them."

Raudrey and Claus rode close together. In fact, so close together, that their right or left leg would hit each other and bruise their shins. This action was not by choice, however. Their horses were beginning to feel nervous and even tried heading back. Eventually, they had lost all light to their path, so Raudrey had lit a lantern and held it in front of them. They never realized that there was a swamp just outside their pleasant little village's forest. They heard croaking and hooting from the toads, frogs, and owls that resided in the area.

Claus' horse jerked to the right, who was immediately pulled back to the left to stay straight. "Raud, the horses can't take much more of this. We should head back."

"Almost out of here." Raudrey said almost calmly.

"How do you know?" Claus snapped.

"This swamp is only a mile. We've covered at least more than half of it." He explained.

Something in the water beside them slithered and splashed next to Raudrey, scaring the horse and making him rear up in fear. With the sudden jolt, Raudrey was unable to keep his grip and fell off, dropping all of his things and the lantern. Claus flinched, but was able to keep his horse in control. After the horse whinnied and neighed away as he galloped off, there was then absolute silence and darkness.

Claus opened his eyes, seeing nothing, "Raud, mind lighting that lantern?" he asked.

There was absolute silence.

Claus furrowed his brows and carefully dismounted his horse, "Raudrey?" he called, keeling and feeling around for anything. The first thing he bumped his hand into was a straight stick, beside it were several more, he found it safe to assume he found Raudrey's quiver of arrows. He grab hold of one and searched for the bow successfully. He set the arrow and aimed straight up, knowing it wasn't going to do much. He shot and released the arrow.

A small stream of moonlight beamed onto Raudrey's face, unconscious, bruised and bleeding from whatever that horse had done after he was thrown off. "R-Raudrey?" he asked.


	2. Chapter 2

Claus walked into an inn in a village that was just outside of the swamp. The sun was just beginning to peek over the tops of the houses and light up that particular corner of Hyrule. When he stepped into the inn, caked in mud and drenched in swamp water, he was given a look as though people just watched a Zora walk in. He took a deep breath and went to the counter, "How much is a room for a couple nights?" he asked.

The attendant looked at the grumpy blonde for a moment, trying to register what had walked into his establishment. He then leaned over and checked out the window, seeing a horse with a limp body draped over her back.

"Hello?" Claus called, "How much are one of your rooms?"

The attendant looked at him, "Um…" he opened his mouth to speak, then paused. "What happened to you?"

"Look, it's been a long night, I'm tired, stinky, and extremely sore because I pulled a muscle trying to get my horse-trampled brother onto the back of a different horse." Claus explained, "How much are your rooms?" he repeated, his tone hardened.

"Fifty a night." The attendant quickly answered. "But- for you and your brother, twenty-five."

Claus rolled his eyes, "Fifty is fine." He handed the man a purple rupee and was handed a room key in exchange. He turned and walked out the door, seeing Raudrey stand with both hands on the side of the horse, trying to keep himself balanced, his eyes shut tightly, indicating that he had a massive headache. "Raudrey!" he gasped, holding Raudrey's sides to help support him, however, he only heard a shout of pain come from the man. "Sorry!" he flinched and took his hands away. "Let's get you to a bed." He pulled Raudrey's arm over his shoulders and walked him to the room labeled on the key's tag. He unlocked the door shakily, mainly under Raudrey's weight, and shoved the door open. In doing this, he almost fell. Fear panged in his chest, Raudrey was having difficulty standing, let alone walking, his breaths have gone ragged and he was barely keeping his eyes open. "Come on!" he grunted and plopped Raudrey onto the nearest bed, wishing that it had gone a bit smoother when he laid him down.

Raudrey had howled in pain, curling up painfully into a ball. He was now panting and clawing into his head.

"Raudrey! Raudrey, calm down." He pulled his hands away and put a hand on his shoulder, "The more you touch it, the worse it's gonna hurt." Claus said, trying to calm the man down. "You're going to be okay." He said.

Raudrey looked up at him through pained yellow eyes, then he squeezed them shut again, "Everything hurts…" he groaned, stifling a small sob, "Everything hurts…"

"Lie down straight and flat, okay? I'm going to go find a doctor to take a look at you." He said, worry filling his voice. Raudrey was always the stronger out of the two, so to see him writhing in pain and crying in fetal position scared Claus. If Raudrey was scared, what hope did he have? Claus stood to leave quickly.

"Don't!" Raudrey gasped and grabbed Claus' wrist and held on tightly, "Don't leave…" he cried, "I don't want to be alone…" he sniffled, then groaned in pain again, twisting into a new position but held onto Claus' wrist tightly.

Claus' eyes watered, he never wanted to see Raudrey like this. Raudrey wasn't his real brother, but he sure looked up to him like one. Link wasn't Claus' hero. He never was. Raudrey was always there for him, even when he was sick or when he himself was upset. Raudrey treated Claus like he was his brother and had been his entire life.

He took a deep breath and nodded, kneeling by the bed and grabbing Raudrey's hand, tightening his grip and flexing the hand that was currently being held hostage.

Eventually, the loud groans would become uncomfortable grunts, then labored breathing, then silence as Raudrey's trembling body fell back to unconsciousness. His grip loosened on his wrist and released his arm completely. Claus sighed and stood up, testing the mobility of his hand, swearing that it was turning purple. "I'm going to find you a doctor, see if we can get you taken care of…" he said sadly, examining the injuries littering Raudrey's body. Cuts, scrapes and several bruises made themselves present on the surface of his skin, changing his skin tone almost completely, from the original slight tan that he had, he was now red, purple and… almost white. Claus didn't realize that Raudrey had grown so pale. He clenched his fist and pulled his eyebrows together in determination. He quickly turned away and left the room altogether, being sure to close the door quietly. The second he turned around, he flinched with how bright everything was. It was barely sunrise when he got into town. He took a deep breath and stopped the first person he saw, "Do you know where the doctor is in town?" he asked.

The woman flinched, "Oh my- um… a doctor?" she clarified, "The doctor has fallen ill." She said, "No one has been able to get healthcare for days."

Claus visibly sunk, "Your doctor is sick?" he asked in disbelief.

"I don't think he'd be able to help with all that mud on you, though." She said, "He can't examine a dirty patient."

Claus fell to his knees and stared at his hands and the ground, "It's not for me…" he sniffled.

The woman crouched by him and tried making eye contact with him, "Who's it for?" she asked.

"My brother…" he said, his bangs hung over his eyes as tears fell down his face, leaving clean trails free of mud in their paths. "He was trampled by his horse and he's in a lot of pain…" he said.

The woman let out a deep sigh, "Let me see him. I'm not a doctor, but I am training to be a nurse…" she said.

Claus stood back up and showed her to the room that they were staying in. "Him…" he said, pointing to the figure lying unconscious on the bed.

She nodded, "Go get yourself washed up and I'll take a look at him." She suggested.

Claus gave her a skeptical look, "I-I'd rather stay here."

"It'll be alright… Claus…" a hoarse voice groaned from behind the woman.

Claus jumped around her and dropped to his knees by Raudrey's bed. "Raudrey!" he gasped.

"Listen to the pretty lady, Claus…" Raudrey managed a weak smile.

"B-but…" Claus stuttered.

"No 'buts'." Raudrey said. "Go get yourself cleaned up…" he grunted in pain, twisting uncomfortably.

"Don't move, it'll get worse." The woman said, gently placing a hand on Raudrey's forehead. She looked at Claus, "Claus, was it?" she asked.

Claus nodded.

"Alright, go get washed up while I get… Raudrey?" she looked at him, earning a nod from the pained archer. "While I get Raudrey looked at."

Claus looked back down at Raudrey.

"I'll be fine." Raudrey said reassuringly. "Now go… you smell like a swamp." He chuckled painfully.

Claus sighed and stood up with a faint smile. "I slipped getting your stomped butt onto the horse." He smirked and walked off, relaxed on the outside, but terrified on the inside.

Raudrey watched Claus close the door and let his smile fade.

The woman looked at him sadly, "Your brother's really worried about you." She said and lifted his shirt to see any other damage that wasn't on his head and face. "You two look nothing alike though…"

Raudrey took a deep breath, "He's not my brother by blood. His family adopted me when my parents were killed in a village raid." He explained.

She paused, "That's so sad…" she looked back at his stomach and ribs, finding both riddled in cuts and bruises, "So… what exactly happened here?"

"Something scared my horse and he stomped all over me after throwing me off his back." He explained, then groaned loudly.

The woman flinched and pulled her hands away from his body. "What's wrong?" she gasped.

Claus sat in the pond nearby after hanging his clothes to dry. He stared at the surface of the water in front of him, mulling over and over in his head what could be happening with Raudrey. He hated himself for leaving him alone with a complete stranger who claimed to be training to be a nurse. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, listening to the indistinct conversations of any other people who were also at the pond, wishing he was alone. He wasn't used to a public bath. His ear twitched when he heard sloshing beside him, indicating that someone decided to take a seat there. He furrowed his brows and closed his eyes tighter.

"So… how come you haven't gone home yet?" a girl's voice asked, not too young, in fact about Claus' age- seventeen.

"What?" he opened his eyes to look at her, then quickly looked away, yep- he definitely wasn't used to a public bath. To him, it was a gateway nudist colony.

"You just saved Hyrule, don't you wanna celebrate with your family?" she asked.

Claus' ears lowered, finally understanding why she chose to sit next to him, "You have me mistaken for someone else…" he said.

"No, I don't." she giggled, "You're Link!" she laughed, clearly not paying attention to the volume she was using.

Claus' body ran cold, knowing she called the attention of every other person in that pond, and now he knew every pair of eyes present were on him. He sank more into the water, "I'm _not_ Link…" he growled, finally building up the courage to look at her.

The girl was very perky. Her bright blue eyes looked at him wide with a warm, country smile. Her soaked autumn hair draped around her shoulders and covered her chest, fortunately. "Well, you look just like him!" she smiled widely.

Claus blushed and looked away.

"What brings you here anyway?" she asked.

Claus never discussed with Raudrey about Link, about the fact that he had been captured. Assuming that they were planning on asking around, he assumed that it was okay to tell. And why shouldn't he tell? The more people knowing Link was missing the better, right? They could get help. However, considering that she'd already caught everyone's attention and got them to look at him in his naked glory, he decided against it. "My friend is being looked at by a nurse right now, and she wanted me to go wash up… it's a long story." He said. Not a lie, but not the full truth either.

"What's wrong with your friend?" she asked, suddenly worried. When Claus looked at her, seeing the adorable expression on her face, he looked away.

"He was trampled by his horse." He squeezed his eyes shut.

She gasped and covered her mouth with her hands, splashing him in the process, "When?"

"Um… last night… early this morning." He said, "A few hours ago." He looked down at the water and focused away from her. "Something scared his horse so he was thrown off and stomped on…"

The girl stared at him for a while, seeing the sad expression that had taken over him. She watched him quickly splash his face and wipe away some mud, brushing his blonde hair back and looking to the sky. She looked down, "I lost my mother to a spooked horse…" she said sadly. "So I understand…"

"I'm sorry to hear…" Claus said.

She looked back at him, "What's your name?" she asked.

"Claus." He replied. "And yours?"

"Matilda." She smiled, however, the memory of her mother forced her smile to fade. "I'd go to him now, if I were you…" she said. "My mother didn't pass on quickly, but she suffered. She only wanted me and my father at her side."

Claus scoffed, "Raudrey told me to go wash up." He said, "He didn't want me around."

"He? Raudrey? That sounds like a girl's name." she said, the cute, curious look taking over her face again.

Claus couldn't help but to smile, "We get that a lot." He sighed, "Was there… anything they could do for your mother?" he asked, "Anything to help her injuries?"

Matilda shook her head, "The doctor studied her and even straightened the broken bones, but… something inside her body was damaged and he couldn't fix it."

"What about surgery?" Claus asked, trying desperately to find a solution.

She shook her head again, "He didn't want to risk cutting her open if he couldn't find what was wrong."

Claus sighed. "I have to go." He said and climbed out of the pond, grabbing his clothes and leaving.

Matilda watched him, "I'm sorry…" she whispered, even knowing he couldn't hear her.

Claus found his way back to the inn, fully clothed and clean. After finding his room, he gave the door a shove to open it, hating that he was given the one room with a sticky door. Beside Raudrey's side, was the nurse. "Did you find what was wrong?" he asked.

The woman stood and shook her head sadly, "No… but he's getting weak fast." She said. "I'd do surgery on him, but I don't want to start an operation and find nothing wrong and have him cut open for nothing."

This was exactly what Claus was scared to hear. Of course, he met the _one_ person in town who lost a family member to the same thing, and of course, he has to hear the _same_ thing that Matilda was told before her mother died.

The nurse watched Claus sink, "I'm sorry, Little One…" she hugged him. "But… I made him as comfortable as I could…" she said, holding the sobbing boy tightly. "I'm so sorry…"

"I can't lose him…" Claus gasped, "I can't lose him…" he repeated in a whimper.

"But…" she said, furrowing her brows, "There is something." She said.

"Anything! I'll do anything! I don't wanna lose my brother!" Claus sobbed.

"Shh-shh…" she hushed him, "There's a clearing that has been rumored to be a haven for Life Fairies…" she said, catching Claus' attention and making him up right up at her.

"Where?"

"The swamp. I know- Raudrey told me that you both just left the swamp, but there's a clearing in the swamp that's pure, there's no monsters, there's no slime, it is pure green and holy." She said, "I've seen it." Her expression was full of worry and wonder.

"You've seen it? Where? How?" Claus asked with amazement and eagerness.

"My husband." She said, "He was dying and a witch led me to them so I could heal him." She explained, "The witch enchanted some mushrooms and had them light the way. It shouldn't be that difficult to find them."

Claus nodded, "Keep an eye on him!" he commanded and ran out.

The woman stood in awe. She'd never seen anyone move that fast before. Behind her, she heard Raudrey groan weakly. She turned around to look at him.

"Wh-where's Claus?" he panted, his golden eyes barely staying open.

"He's going to get help." She reassured him. "He's coming right back."

"Th… thank you… Heather…" Raudrey said, his eyes drifting shut again. He was all cleaned up, so now it was easier to tell what his skin was supposed to look like, but instead of the tanned, Gerudo-like skin tone he was supposed to have, it was a pale peach, much like Claus' skin tone, but almost paler. His long, red-pink hair had been untied and brushed off to the side over the pillow his head laid on. The pale, tan covers were pulled up and over his chest, only allowing his arms to be exposed.

Heather sighed and sat beside him, brushing his hair back more.

Claus tromped through the swamp, cursing at himself that he had to go through the sticky, smelly death trap again. He had taken his horse with him, but had to leave her tied to a tree outside so she didn't stomp on him too. Fortunately, it didn't take long before he found the glowing mushrooms, just as Heather said. He quickly followed the mushrooms down the path, finding a thick curtain of vines, slimy and olive green. He touched it for a moment and flinched- having never touched anything so slimy. He shook off the grime on his hand and opened the curtain, finding the clearing exactly as Heather described it. It was greener than his own tunic, and more beautiful than the Goddess. Small orbs of light hovered around the area and illuminated the area with a golden white glow. Claus had a hard time taking in the beauty of it. He took a deep breath and reached for a jar from the bag strapped around his waist. "I hope this works..."


	3. Chapter 3

Back in the village where Raudrey and Claus lived, one of the men was finally releasing the last of the several unhappy horses tied to a single post. Mikolas brushed the side of his horse and sighed.

The man looked at him, "The boys will be fine." He said with false hope.

"Taro, Claus and Raudrey have never left the village in their entire lifetimes, let alone go through that swamp." Mikolas said, his grip on the brush tightening.

"I thought Raudrey was from the desert." Taro said and walked the horse back to its original place.

"He was, but his parents brought him here at a young age. He was only a baby when they moved here." Mikolas explained, "They were worried about the boy's hair."

"That it's not red like every other Gerudo in that desert?" Taro asked; a judgmental tone made itself present in his voice.

Mikolas shot a glare at him, "It's highly frowned upon amongst the Gerudo. If they had found Raudrey, they would've gotten rid of him. His parents wanted him to be safe so they escaped and came here."

Taro nodded, "I had no idea that was the case." He looked down, then he paused, "I thought there was only one Gerudo male born once every hundred years." He looked back up at him in confusion.

"That's a myth-" Mikolas began to say until a loud, horrified horse's cry startled anyone in the area. A grey speckled horse galloped into the stables and reared up. Mikolas jumped up and grabbed the reigns, settling the horse and keeping him down.

"Isn't that Raudrey's horse?" Taro asked in fear.

Mikolas studied the horse for a while, finding the swamp mud covering his hooves. He looked at Taro, "Something happened." He said, "The boys are in trouble." He gasped and jumped onto the horse, "Let's go, Stonehenge!" he commanded and rode out of the village, going in the exact direction where Claus and Raudrey had gone.

The sun was setting, giving the world a fiery glow. Claus rushed back to the village with the small jar in his hands, encasing a small fairy he captured. He sat on the back of his horse, finally realizing just how exhausted he really has. He hadn't gotten any sleep since Link was captured. He held the jar close to him and hopped off the horse once she stopped at the inn. He shoved the door open and found Heather sitting beside Raudrey once again.

"Did you find one?" she asked.

Claus nodded and showed her the glowing jar.

"Good, good." She smiled fearfully. She didn't know Raudrey very well, but he reminded her of her husband, who had died not too long after he was healed with the fairy she had brought him. This was only bringing her flashbacks.

Claus knelt by Raudrey's side, the sight of him was terrifying. He'd lost just about all color, his breathing was shallow and barely present, and his eyes had dark rings around them. "Raudrey, you'll be okay…" he opened the jar and tipped it sideways, allowing the fairy the opportunity to escape.

She stood at the rim of the jar for a while, looking around. She then looked down at Raudrey, hesitating a moment before flying in circles over him. When she vanished, there was a small, childish giggle that echoed.

Silence then filled the room. Heather and Claus sat for a moment, waiting for any movement. Any sign that the fairy did as she was supposed to in regards to helping Raudrey, but they heard nothing.

"I was too late…" Claus' voice broke.

Heather sunk. She told Claus that there was a way to save his best friend and it didn't work. "I'm sorry…" she whispered.

"Just go…" he shook with sadness and anger.

She stood up, "Young man, I-"

"Get out of here!" Claus shouted and turned around to face her with reddened tear-filled eyes.

Heather flinched and walked out of the room, "I don't understand why it didn't work…" she said quietly and closed the door behind her.

Claus' chest felt as though he'd been stepped on, he dropped to his knees and sobbed, "Raudrey, say something…" he cried, "Please," he gasped, "Anything…" he looked over at him, his vision warped with watery eyes. He sniffled and stopped for a moment, looking at him closely and seeing that he was regaining color, and quick. Soon enough his wounds were healed and the man's eyes shot open.

He gasped deeply, sounding as though he'd been drowning. He coughed and gripped the blanket as he caught his breath.

"Raudrey!" Claus jumped up and hugged the man still lying in bed.

Raudrey's eyes grew dark. He took deep, heavy breaths. He pushed Claus aside and sat straight up, his bangs covering his eyes.

"Raudrey?" Claus tilted his head, "How're you feeling?"

Raudrey gave him a yellow-eyed glare and jumped at him, both hands clasped firmly around Claus' neck, pinning him to the floor with his body weight crushing him.

Claus struggled and kicked to free himself, however, Raudrey was almost twice his size. "Raud- get-" he gagged, "Help-!" he choked out, resorting to smacking Raudrey to try and fight him off. "Bro…ther…" he coughed, feeling Raudrey's grip get tighter. He glanced over and found the fallen quiver of arrows. He reached over to grab an arrow, finding it was just out of reach and he could barely pat one with his fingertip. His vision then began to darken and his eyes began to close. He looked back up at Raudrey, seeing the aggression and hate in his eyes. This wasn't Raudrey… he knew it wasn't. His strength faded.

Raudrey took a moment before he realized what he was doing, his eyes lightened and he jumped off of Claus, allowing him to breathe, "Claus!" he gasped, "Wha- I- I'm so sorry!" he apologized.

Claus sat up and nursed his throat, unsure what to say.

Raudrey looked down and sat back on his bed. "I'm sorry…" he said.

Claus looked away and sat on the opposing bed. "What was that about?" he asked, his voice hoarse.

"I don't know…" Raudrey stared at his hands. "Claus, I'm-"

"Apologize to me again, and I swear I'm going to hit you…" Claus snapped. "It wasn't you. You were possessed." He explained.

"Possessed?" Raudrey asked.

"I think it had something to do with that swamp." Claus said.

"It _is_ haunted…" Raudrey nodded. He shook his head and closed his eyes, "But- why would they possess me to kill you?" he asked panicked.

"I don't know…" Claus groaned and laid down, turning away from Raudrey, "Some heroes we are…" he scoffed.

"What?" Raudrey asked, pulling his eyebrows together.

"Not even a full day of going to search for Link and we're only at the next town over, one of us almost died and that same one of us tried to kill the other." He said bitterly, "We're making great progress, Raudrey." Claus commented with a slap of sarcasm on his tone.

Raudrey looked down, "I didn't mean to hurt you…" he said sadly.

Claus sighed, "I know… don't take it personally, I'm just tired…" he said, "I haven't gotten any sleep since the night before Link went missing, I'm running on embers right now…"

Raudrey sighed, "I understand." He said calmly, "Get some rest, Brother. I'll go wash up. Heather told me about a public bath." He stood up.

"_Don't_ tell them you know Link." Claus said, "They'll stare at you and your junk if you say anything."

"Have they seen him?" Raudrey asked.

"A girl asked why he wasn't home yet. But she thought I was Link, so that's where the miscommunication started."

"I'll manage." Raudrey smiled, "Sleep well, Claus." He said quietly and left the room, gently patting the horse as he started for the public pond. He wasn't too fond of the idea of a public bath either, but it was something. Heather tried, but she didn't clean off _all_ the mud from his body. After getting undressed and washing his clothes, he hung them to dry and relaxed in the pond. He untied his hair and let his hair down. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, listening to the conversations going on in the pond, his ears twitching occasionally, catching random key points in several conversations; someone sleeping with someone else, what was going to be for supper that night, a swamp monster with a horse that came in that morning, who was winning the tournament, who's the pink-haired guy that just sat down, and so on.

He furrowed his brows and splashed his face, rubbing mud off of his face and scrubbing dirt out of his hair, hating that he hadn't brushed it yet. He didn't plan on _just_ bathing. He was going to ask if anyone knew about Link, or… at least when was the last time they saw him. He also needed to gather supplies for the trip, considering they had packed nothing. They had no food, no healing supplies, and a map would've been helpful. He was happy to have even made it out of that swamp. He then thought of the fact that he also didn't have a horse of his own at the moment. He wasn't sure where Stonehenge had run off after he trampled him. He most likely had to walk, which didn't bother him, but Claus would be a little more ahead and his horse would probably get bored. He sighed and finished washing up. He stepped out of the pond without calling any attention to himself and got dressed. Next stop was a potion shop.

Raudrey walked into the potion shop and immediately felt uncomfortable. The shop keeper stared at him, but it didn't feel like he was the only one.

"What can I help you with, son?" the old man asked, his voice crackly and creaky. He seemed to have one good eye since the other one squinted as he stared at him, "Not here to steal my bottles for fairies and whatnot are ye?" he asked suspiciously.

"No sir, I'm here for honest business." Raudrey reassured him.

"I'm sure you are," he said doubtingly, "What kind of honest business can a pink-headed Gerudo have?" he asked sarcastically. "Go, go, rob me of my goods since I'm old and defenseless." He waved him off.

Raudrey gave him a dark look, "I am _not_ a Gerudo." He almost growled, but still maintained a respectful tone. He picked up seven bottles in his arms and brought them to the counter to buy from the old merchant. "I need some red potion too." He said calmly after setting down the bottles.

The old man grumbled, "I remember when the last male Gerudo was born…" he said, still not letting up on the stereotype that he was placing Raudrey under, "He almost killed us all later down the line." He said, "Then a sweet young man killed him and saved us all."

"And then that hero went missing." Raudrey muttered, digging in his pockets for his wallet.

The man looked up at him in shock, "Link's missing?" he asked in fear, "What have you done?"

"I have done nothing, sir." Raudrey said and pulled out a few rupees, "I'm out searching for him with my friend. You haven't seen him, have you?"

The man took on a sad look, "Not since the first time he came here. That was several months ago." He sighed, "Such a sweet kid."

Raudrey thought for a while. "Link was actually a close friend of mine. When the village found out that he's in trouble last night, my brother and I rushed out to help." He explained and handed him a purple rupee and two orange ones.

The man studied the gems for a while, finally seeing that Raudrey was an honest person, "Well… I'm not sure if this will help…" he started and began filling six bottles with red potion, "But there's a sorcerer that lives in a cottage in the Thriving Woods, who sees all…" he explained, "I know, because he makes these potions."

Raudrey listened carefully.

The man continued, "He has a pet bird with quite an attitude. He'll help you find Link." He handed Raudrey the potions.

"Thank you, sir." Raudrey bowed and put the potions in his bag, followed by the last empty bottle.

"Did you want a potion in that one too?" he asked and pointed at the empty bottle.

"No, we're saving this one for something else, thank you again." Raudrey said.

"What's your name, lad?" he asked

"Raudrey, and yours?"

"Pulin." He smiled crookedly, "Good luck, Raudrey. And tell that boy I said 'hello'."

"I will, sir. Thank you." Raudrey bowed again and walked out of the shop, sighing in relief, "Now I have a lead… to a lead…" he said under his breath and found himself at a stand with meat hung up everywhere. "Hello?" he called.

A heavier man walked out wearing a bloody apron and, like Pulin had, gave a mean, harsh look to Raudrey, "What is Gerudo man doing in this area of Hyrule?" he asked with a thick accent.

"I'm not Gerudo, sir." Raudrey corrected again, "I just need some of your dried meat."

The butcher chuckled, "A man with your skin and hair color must be Gerudo. Even your eyes say so."

"Gerudo have red hair, not pink." Raudrey corrected, "And they're also from the desert. I'm from the woods." He said.

"Fine. How much meat?" he asked.

Raudrey pulled out his wallet and dug out another purple rupee, "However much this will get me." He said.

The man nodded and pulled out a large stab of beef out from under the counter, "This good?" he asked, the slab was the size of a large book.

"Perfect." Raudrey smiled and handed the butcher the money, "Thank you." He said. "Do you know where I can find a map of Hyrule by chance?" he asked, loading the wrapped-up meat into the bag.

The butcher caught a glimpse of the several bottles in Raudrey's bag, "You be out of luck there, boy. Where did you get those bottles? Did you steal those from Pulin?" he asked.

"I bought them from Pulin." Raudrey corrected.

The man nodded, "I see. You are off on big trip?"

"Yeah, quite a trip this will be." Raudrey said, "Hey- if you see Link, send him home for me, okay?"

"Link is not home?"

Raudrey shook his head and avoided eye contact, "He got held up. _If_ you see him, just… send him home please." He repeated and walked off.

When Raudrey finally reached the inn, the sky was dark, almost as dark as it was when he and Claus left home the night before. He shoved the door open to the room and heard Claus snoring away. He sighed and sat his bag down carefully. He then stared at the bag for a while, confused as to where he even got it in the first place. He didn't have it when he left for the public bath; nor did he have it when he walked into the potion shop. But he had it when he was given the potions. He shook his head and decided not to question it, knowing that there were probably more things that Link had to question when he was out exploring Hyrule.

"How was your uncomfortable public bath?" Claus asked sleepily.

"Not at bad as yours was I'm sure." Raudrey replied.

Claus chuckled, "Alright…"

"I got some potions and some food." Raudrey said, his stomach then growling.

Claus' stomach growled at the same time, "Mind if we eat some of it now?" he asked.

"Yeah, let's get some of this cooked." Raudrey pulled out the meat and cut a strip of it off, cutting the strip in half so there'd be a piece for each of them. He then stuck each piece onto an arrow and poked them into the fireplace, "I got a lead as to how to begin to look for Link." He said.

Claus sat straight up, "Really?"

"There's a sorcerer in a cottage in the Thriving Woods-" He started.

"I'm gonna stop you there." Claus closed his eyes and held his hand up, "A sorcerer? In a cottage? In the woods? Raud, do you know how cliché that sounds?"

Raudrey looked up at him.

"Raudrey, whoever told you this is probably full of bull. That's dumb." Claus said.

Raudrey rose an eyebrow, "Shut up and let me finish?"

Claus rolled his eyes, "Fine."

"I know it sounds stupid. You know that I've heard it too many times before, but if it's a way to find Link, then I'm willing to give it a shot."

"Let me guess, the guy has a pet bird?"

"From what I'm told, yes."

"With an attitude?"

"Yep." Raudrey nodded and checked the meat, he liked his beef done medium rare. Claus liked his well done, however, so he had to sit longer while Claus' beef was still cooking.

"How can you eat your meat all bloody like that?" Claus asked, somewhat disgusted.

"You know how many times you've asked me that?" Raudrey asked, his mouth full.

"I still don't get it. If the cow is dead, that's just… that's gross."

Raudrey checked Claus' piece one last time before handing it to him, "That's what you think." He said and leaned his back against his bed, "I think it's juicier. I prefer 'em juicy." He said contentedly.

"Like your women?" Claus joked.

Raudrey glared at him, "So you prefer your women stiff as a board?" he asked, considering the circumstances.

Claus glared back at him, "So we're looking for this so-called sorcerer in the morning?"

"Sure." Raudrey said, "You need to catch up on your sleep anyways…"

**Anyway, about what Mikolas and Taro were talking about with the 'one Gerudo male born once every hundred years' thing, I'm not following that logic. Hear me out. Reason being- if one Gerudo man is born once every hundred years, then why are there so many women. Ganon has to have done at least half of every single Gerudo woman for that race to continue. And what happens if Ganon dies? Link will have single-handedly killed off an entire race by killing the only man after he fights with Ganon. So... here's my theory, there are an equal amount of Gerudo men in the race as there are women. The only one you _do_ hear about though, is Ganon and that's once every hundred years or so. So yes- Raudrey is Gerudo. No, he doesn't actually know he is, he just believes he's naturally tan with yellow eyes and pink hair. Any questions? Leave a review for that too. And thank you so much for reading this!**


	4. Chapter 4

"You know I still think this is a load of crap, right?" Claus said bitterly, walking his horse with Raudrey to the middle of the woods to find an 'all-seeing wizard with a pet bird that has an attitude'. "Do you even know the guy's name?" he asked.

Raudrey nodded, "Kaio. That's all I've got."

Claus nodded heavily with sarcasm, "Kaio the all-seeing wizard with a bitchy pet bird, fantastic." He announced.

"Claus!" Raudrey snapped, "If there's any way of-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know. If there's any way of finding Link, Kaio's our best bet." Claus sighed, "I just think we're being sent on a snipe hunt."

"Snipes exist." Raudrey said quickly, "I've seen one." He looked over at Claus, who was now staring at the sky. "What?" he asked and looked up to the sky, seeing a bird flying high up.

"Don't witches and wizards typically have pet crows?" Claus asked, watching the bird turn and fly off, landing of somewhere in the distance.

"That wasn't a crow…" Raudrey said and focused ahead of him, "That was too big." He picked up the pace, "Let's keep going."

Claus quickened the pace and followed Raudrey. Soon enough, they approached a small cottage in the middle of the woods. Claus looked up at Raudrey in surprise, "We actually found him." He said.

Raudrey grew a small smile, "We did." He said and took a step forward, but jumped when he heard someone shout at him.

"Halt!" the voice barked, "What business do you have here?"

The two looked around, trying to find the source, "We're looking for Kaio." Raudrey answered.

"What do you want with him?" the voice demanded, the owner of the voice sounded as though he was quite large.

"We need help looking for someone." Claus said.

"Like who?" the voice sounded testy.

"Oh, Christy, stop it!" a younger voice shouted.

Claus and Raudrey snapped their attention back to the cottage, out the door stepped a young man about nineteen or twenty with wild grey-blonde hair, a thin frame with an over-sized coat wrapped around him. His eyes were a light, electric blue, and half of his face looked as though he'd been hit by a dragon's breath- it was burnt and was missing the ear on that side. Upon his face, were a pair of thick, thick glasses, "Welcome you two!" he said with a big smile on his face.

"You must be Kaio." Raudrey said, shaking the boy's hand.

"I am, I am." Kaio smiled and shook Claus' hand. "Come on, let's get inside." He turned around and led back into the cottage.

Raudrey followed while Claus tied the horse to the post outside. He then quickly went inside.

"So sorry about the mess, you two, I don't have guests often." Kaio apologized. "So…" he turned around and looked at Claus again, "Oh! Link! I almost didn't recognize you without your hat." He commented, "You're shorter than I remember you. How long has it been? A few months?"

"Uh- Kaio, I'm not actually Link. We just happen to look a lot alike." Claus explained, "My name is Claus."

"Oh! My apologies again. It must be frustrating for you to be mistaken for the hero so often." Kaio said. "So, what can I help you two with?"

Claus looked over and saw a large black bird, assuming it was the same one from before, "Whoa, a raven!" he gasped.

"Yeah, isn't she pretty?" Kaio asked, flinching when doing so.

Raudrey stroked the back of the bird's neck, "She is." He smiled.

"Pretty bird." Claus cooed, "Pretty bird." He said and scratched the side of her neck.

She quickly tipped her head to the side to bite Claus' finger. "Don't baby me." She said and stepped aside, leaning slightly into Raudrey's hand.

Claus jumped, "She talked!"

"Yeah, don't baby her like that, she really doesn't like it." Kaio explained, "And she's overprotective- that's why she yelled at you two earlier."

"Really?" Claus asked.

"Yeah, ravens can talk and mimic any voice they want." Raudrey said.

"Cool." Claus said, watching the bird fly onto a post in front of Kaio.

"Anyway, your business here?" the bird asked, repeating Kaio's previous question.

"Oh-" Raudrey turned to look at Kaio, "Link is missing."

"What!?" Kaio and the bird gasped.

"He was captured by someone. I was told you would be the one to help us." Raudrey said.

"Well, yeah that's-"

The bird held up a wing to keep Kaio from talking, "Why should _we_ help you? A Gerudo and a Link look-alike? You two are asking for trouble."

"Christy- Don't you-"

"Kaio, you remember the last people that tried to get help from you?" Christy turned to him and gave him a concerned look.

Kaio opened his mouth to speak, then looked back down and turned his head away, hiding the burns on the side of his head.

Raudrey furrowed his brows, "What happened?"

"Last time someone came by and asked for help to track someone, they nearly killed him. They were impatient, they thought he asked too many questions. They thought he was a fake." Christy explained, her tone hardening with every sentence, "He didn't used to live in this cottage. He used to live in the mountains. They burned his house down after throwing acid on the side of his face." Christy said. "That was when I met him, stumbling down the mountains, disoriented and walking into everything, deaf on one side, almost blind, almost dead with the injuries he'd sustained." She growled. She stood up straight and opened her wings a little bit, "And I'll be damned if I find him like that again." She said threateningly, "Though you don't have a dragon, I don't know what kind of tricks you boys would have up your sleeves." She darted a glare at Raudrey, "Especially with a Gerudo."

Raudrey stood hurt by the statement. "I… am _not_ a Gerudo…" he said defiantly.

"Please, you're just as Gerudo as Ganondorf is." Christy insisted.

"Christy, that's enough." Kaio said and stepped forward, that plastered smile had washed away and was replaced with a saddened look that looked as though it didn't belong with the bright wizard, "Though I don't think you two are a danger, I see her point. Those dragon-keepers were as polite and just as friendly as you two are now, yet they still almost killed me." He explained solemnly, "What motivation do we have to help you? How do we know you're not going to attack us?" he asked.

Raudrey and Claus looked at each other, then Raudrey looked back up at Kaio and Christy, "Because Link is in trouble. He's a close friend of mine and I want to help him like he helped Hyrule. If we were to attack you, we wouldn't have left our weapons outside with the horse." Raudrey explained, "And just because I look like a Gerudo, doesn't mean that I _am_ one. I was raised in a forest."

Kaio still seemed skeptical.

"And… Pulin says 'hello'." Raudrey said.

Kaio grew a large smile on his face, "Alright." He said.

Christy relaxed, she trusted the old man's judgment. If he trusted Raudrey, then she could trust him.

"So, boys, when did Link go missing?" Kaio asked, retrieving several rolled-up sheets of parchment.

"A couple days ago." Raudrey said. "We got the note not last night, but the night before."

"A couple days go…" Kaio muttered, "Alright then." He said and finally retrieved a roll-up map. He laid it on the table and set a book on each of the corners.

"What's a map gonna do to help us?" Claus asked.

"Just shut up and watch." Christy scowled.

Raudrey paid close attention, seeing a red dot on part of the map, from the looks of it, it indicated where they were located.

"Hey- Christy, didn't Link leave something here?" Kaio asked.

"He dropped an arrow." She suggested.

"Perfect." Kaio held his hand out, "Can you bring that to me please?"

Christy flew out of the room for a moment, then quickly returned with an arrow in her claw.

"Thank you, thank you." Kaio said and broke part of the arrow and dipped it into a clear potion he had retrieved.

"What does that do?" Claus asked, the he paused, seeing the broken end of the arrow melt into the potion.

"Watch." Kaio said, then set the rest of the arrow aside. He then closed the bottle and shook it up violently, mixing the contents. The entire bottle remained clear when he stopped shaking the mixture. He took the top off of the bottle and dumped its contents onto the map, smoke covering the entire sheet.

Raudrey and Claus flinched and waved their hands to get the smoke out of their face. Kaio sat still, however. He took a deep breath and blew the smoke away. When the smoke dissipated, there was the map in the same state it was in before. However, there was a new dot on the map, not entirely too far from where the red dot was to the Southeast. The new dot was blue with yellow edges.

Kaio laughed with success. "There he is!" he cheered.

Christy sighed in relief, "And he's alive." She smiled.

"Tha- that's great!" Raudrey laughed, "That's amazing."

Kaio stood up with the map in hand, "Hurry, he's alive, but he's hurt. You need to follow this to wherever this will lead you to find him and get the Hero home." He said, hope filling his eyes. He turned and looked at Christy, "You go with them." He said.

"What?! Why?" she gasped, her feathers raising in shock.

"Because you can fly and see everything from above." Kaio said, then he turned to Raudrey and Claus said, "Do you two have a compass and a couple fairies?" he asked.

"We have a compass, we don't have any fairies." Raudrey said.

"You need fairies!" Kaio announced and ran to a different room. Then he returned with two jars, each containing a fairy, "And don't worry, these are safe fairies." He said.

Raudrey furrowed his brows, "Safe fairies? Are there dangerous ones?" he asked.

"Yes." Kaio nodded, "They're very difficult to tell from good fairies because they look so much alike."

"What do they do?" Claus asked, his ear perked.

"Well, after being used to heal or bring someone to life, they temporarily possess that someone to try to kill the first person they see."

Raudrey rose an eyebrow, "Really?"

Claus gasped, "That's why you tried to kill me." Claus said blatantly and looked at Raudrey, "I must've used one of those fairies on you when you attacked me."

Raudrey looked down, "That explains it."

"Wait- you've already come across one?" Kaio asked.

"It'd make sense…" Claus said distantly. Then he shook his head, "Thank you for the fairies, though. Are you sure this is okay?"

Kaio scoffed and waved his hand, "Of course. I know where a pure fountain is, so I can just go and catch more." He smiled, "Now go find Link! I don't know if he can wait any longer." He said and shooed them away, "Christy, go with them, I can take care of myself."

The raven looked at him sadly and flew onto his shoulder on his good side, "Just be careful, alright?" her voice broke a little as she nuzzled the side of his head.

Kaio closed his eyes and held her close, "I will."

"I'll be back as soon as I can, alright?" she promised.

"Alright." Kaio smiled and looked at her. "Now go."

Christy flew onto Raudrey's shoulder and left with them.

For a good portion of the walk, they were silent. At least Christy was able to say goodbye to Kaio, Raudrey and Claus left their family with a lie. Raudrey held the map out in front of him and held the compass with one of the corners. At one point, he sighed, "Christy, mind going up and seeing where we're at?" he asked.

She nodded, "Let me see the map." She said.

Raudrey handed her the map and let her fly up. Claus had stopped his horse so they could wait for her to come back down.

Christy stayed up and checked the surroundings for a while, then she poked the map with one of her claws and brought it back down, "We need to go a little more south." She said.

Raudrey studied it for a while and found that she was right. He turned a little bit and made the slight adjustment so that the compass read the right direction and continued on their walk. "Thank you." He said.

Claus was busy sitting on his horse and sharpening his sword, "Raudrey, how are you doing on arrows?" he asked.

"I'm fine; I have twenty-seven of them. I don't know what happened to the other three." He said.

"Two of them we used to cook dinner last night and the other one was for a little light after Stonehenge stepped on you."

"Who's Stonehenge? A Goron?" Christy asked.

"He's my horse." Raudrey explained, "He trampled me the other night." He never looked up from the map, but glanced ahead of him every once in a while.

"Oh…" Christy nodded, "And that's why you needed a fairy, huh?" she assumed.

"Yeah." Claus nodded, "You don't hear about people surviving from getting trampled by horses very often."

"Not really." Christy agreed. Then she sighed, "I'm gonna go find something to eat, I'm getting hungry."

"Alright, you do that." Raudrey said. "You'll know how to find us."

She jumped off of Raudrey's shoulder and flew off. Shortly after she had flown off, Claus stopped his horse, "Raud?" he asked.

"What?" He asked, still not looking up from the map.

"Is that-?" he asked shakily.

Raudrey looked up from the map and froze. Stumbling toward them, hunched over and barely standing, was a young man of Raudrey's age, blonde and wearing a green tunic and cap. Blood coated his clothes and wounds littered his body. "L-Link?" Raudrey forced out in shock.


End file.
